


Worse Than Nicotine

by softvenus, starry_eyes



Category: Hot Sick
Genre: 18+, Anal, Blowjobs, Daddy Kink, Drinking, Dubious Consent, Explicit Sexual Content, Implied/Referenced Drug Use, NSFW, Porn With Plot, Sexual Content, Unrequited Love, fuck marc, marc is a shithead
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-01-20
Updated: 2019-01-20
Packaged: 2019-10-13 10:33:37
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,986
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17486510
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/softvenus/pseuds/softvenus, https://archiveofourown.org/users/starry_eyes/pseuds/starry_eyes
Summary: Hot Sick is on a break after selling out all over L.A. Everything is fine until their manager visits.





	Worse Than Nicotine

**Author's Note:**

> just a fic about some ocs...

Johnnie drummed on his thigh to the beat blaring on the radio as he sprawled across the band's sofa in their apartment.  
"Feels weird to not be doing something," he remarked. He was filled with restless energy; for the past month or so, they'd been doing shows almost every night. Now that they'd been given time to themselves, it seemed like there was nothing to do besides getting unnecessarily drunk.  
Emerson nodded in agreement and sat on Johnnie's feet with a pointed look as if to say that there was no room for anyone else to sit. The singer just grinned at him and he huffed.  
They were all a little antsy, to say the least, like caged animals. They had freedom, but Matt especially didn't like to go out where they knew they'd be recognized. As much as they loved the band and their fans, it could be exhausting sometimes.  
Valentine leaned against Johnnie, a cigarette in his mouth as per usual. He took a long drag and looked around the couch, his gaze lingering on each of his bandmates as he exhaled the nicotine. It had been a while since they'd had some free time and they were all enjoying it.

It was all going well until a buzz rang out in the apartment, cutting through the loud rock music. Matt, being the eldest, and the one who did everything for the band, went to check the door and rolled his eyes under his sunglasses as he opened it to Marc and a young girl.  
"Hey, buddy, you're looking good! The rest of the guys home?" Marc smiled at Matt. Matt let him and the girl in and closed the door behind him without a word. It wasn’t a secret that Matt and Marc didn’t get along.  
He led them through to the main room and Marc grinned upon setting his eyes on Johnnie. "Hey, guys."  
Johnnie's eyes flickered between Valentine and Marc for a moment before he settled on Marc with a grin.  
"Hi, Marc. Who's this?" he greeted as he wriggled his legs free from underneath Emerson and stood up to say hello to the unfamiliar girl properly.  
Emerson gave the two visitors a megawatt beam and waggled his fingers at them. He quickly jumped up to turn the music down so that they wouldn't have to raise their voices before flinging himself back in his seat.  
"This is my baby girl, Rosemary." Marc smiled, holding his pride and joy close to him.  
"Hi!" she brunette smiled at the band. She looked remarkably like Marc, except for the smile in her eyes which wasn’t reflected in her fathers.  
"Thought I'd bring her to see you guys, considering she'll be your manager if I die anytime soon." Marc joked.  
Matt wished.  
Valentine stood up and looked down at the girl, he took her hand and pressed a kiss to it.  
"Nice to meet you." he smiled.  
Marc looked a little uneasy but decided to focus on Johnnie.  
"Johnnie, you mind stepping out here for a second? Gotta run a few things over with you." he nodded at the singer.  
Rosemary took a seat on the large sofa next to Matt and Emerson and the three got to talking. Valentine gave Johnnie a quizzical look as he exited the room with the manager and he set to pouring drinks for the people remaining in the lounge.  
Johnnie shrugged at Valentine and made a face before shutting the door behind him. He leaned against it when they got outside and raised an eyebrow.

"Did you come all this way just to get your dick wet?" he sneered, his feelings for Marc conflicted as usual.  
He was just doing this to help Hot Sick, not because there was anything "proper" between them, but he couldn't stop the rush of dopamine and catharsis that came with being praised and degraded in the same session.  
"Would it surprise you?" Marc replied, pressing his face into Johnnie's hair and humming. "I missed my favourite boy." he murmured, one hand in Johnnie's hair and the other one rising up to cup Johnnie's soft cheek. Marc pressed a wet, desperate kiss against the man's lips and moaned quietly as he did.  
"You've been doing so good for me recently, huh?" he murmured against Johnnie's wet lips.

Emerson took the glass of whiskey from Valentine with a grateful smile and took a small sip. He then turned his attention to Rosemary. From what he'd gathered from having Marc as a manager and the brief moments that he had mentioned his daughter, he wasn't all that close to Rosemary and didn't want her as his sole heir, but had never had any sons. Surely something like that would have affected their relationship? He was surprised they were so close all of a sudden.  
"So how come both you and your dad came over?" he asked. "Normally it's just Marc that pops in. You shadowing him?”

"Um...between you and I, he's trying to show me that I could never take on his job. He thinks I'm not cut for high maintenance work." she said, thanking Valentine for the drink and sipping it slowly. "Of course, he's an asshole and doesn't know what he's talking about." she laughed. Matt nodded along with her and eventually spoke up. "You don't think looking after a band would be boring?" he asked, leaning back on the couch and pulling his sunglasses off to get a better look at the girl.

Johnnie leaned into the kiss obediently; he knew how highly-strung Marc could be. One wrong move could be misconstrued as him being a prude and then the whole band would suffer for it.  
He wrapped his arms around Marc's neck and looked at him with a wry grin.  
"You think so?" he asked, a slight quiver in his voice at the praise. God. It was so uncharacteristic of him, but it was nice to be appreciated and told that he was doing a good job after reading all the bullshit in the papers about how he was obnoxious and rude with blatantly fabricated stories by pissed off fans who had missed their meet and greet or some crap like that. He pressed his warm body against Marc's and welcomed the hot breath hitting his face.

Emerson couldn't help but snort at the way that Rose spoke of her father, knowing that most of the band agreed with her. He looked up at Matt for a second and tilted his head.  
"We're not boring!" Emerson laughed. "Someone's always doing something unpredictable, so surely the... the spontaneity would be exciting, right?" he grinned, showing his white teeth.

Marc led Johnnie to the singer's bedroom, as he had many times before, and he shut the door behind him.  
"You gonna work that pretty ass for me, baby?" Marc asked, shoving Johnnie down on the bed and working himself out of his trousers, starting with his belt. Marc sucked in air through his teeth as he caught sight of Johnnie's exposed stomach from where his shirt had ridden up.  
"God damn, you're a beauty, aren't you?" he sighed, pulling Johnnie's trousers and underwear off as the singer tended to his shirt.  
"Like a lil’ angel." he praised him. The praise would, of course, get old quick, and Marc would revert back to beating on the singer. Johnnie's cheeks coloured at Marc's sweet words and he felt his cock slowly begin to engorge with blood. He closed his eyes for a moment to compose himself and then continued to unbutton his shirt, dropping it on the floor carelessly.  
"We've gotta be quiet," Johnnie murmured, wary of the fact that not only were the rest of Hot Sick only a few rooms away, but Marc's daughter was as well. "C-Can't have them finding out."  
"Hah. If you can keep quiet then, by all means, do." Marc drawled, dropping down to sit between Johnnie's legs.  
“You better give me some attention after this too, baby." Marc cooed, pressing hot kisses to Johnnie's cock.  
As Johnnie keened Marc hummed and took his cock into his mouth, making the singer mewl.  
Good boy. Marc pulled away and continued stroking his cock, making eye contact with Johnnie.  
"God, look at you. Maybe the papers are right, huh? Maybe you are just a young whore playing it off as the rock and roll lifestyle?" Marc teased. "Just a little slut dressing up in leather, making money for Daddy, aren't you?"

 

The girl laughed airily and Valentine's heart skipped a beat.  
"I don't think you'd ever be boring. I'd love to work with you guys!" she smiled. "From what I've seen of you guys, you're pretty exciting. The shows you've been doing recently are really good. Dad seems to like them, probably just for the money though." Rosemary smiled.  
Emerson nodded along politely and made a face. It was hard to remember sometimes that Marc didn't really value them as people, just basing their worth on how much they could earn him. He smiled at Rosemary again.  
"Well, I'm sure we'd all agree that we'd love to work with you, right?" he responded, looking from Valentine to Matt. Valentine choked on his whiskey, but nodded profusely.  
"Your company is a lot more enjoyable than your dad's." Valentine agreed.  
"You're always welcome here, Rosemary." Matt nodded, raising his glass to her and chugging it. "Refill please, Cupid." Matt requested, holding his glass out for Valentine.  
"Old man can't pour his own whiskey?" Valentine teased, taking the glass anyways and refilling it. "So, what do you do, Rosemary?" Valentine asked, his back to the girl as he refilled Matt’s glass.  
"Oh, I do a bit of everything! Mainly photography at events though. Charity fairs and things like that. Dad thinks it's a waste of time." she sighed, swirling the whiskey around in the glass.

 

Johnnie put his fist in his mouth to muffle his pathetic whines and moans as Marc degraded him in ways that made his cock throb. His hips twitched eagerly but he knew he had to behave; if Marc hadn't said he could, then he couldn't, and that applied to everything.  
"Y-Yes," he gasped, his free hand clutching the sheets beneath him - anything to keep him grounded as Marc worked on his length. "I-I promise I'll make you feel good after this, I'll even let you put it in my ass-" he babbled needily. Marc watched Johnnie in anticipation and smacked his cock, hungrily awaiting his response. Marc fisted his own cock and groaned as he rested his head on Johnnie's thigh.  
"Good boy." he praised him. Johnnie hissed through his teeth.

Emerson 'tsk'ed at Matt playfully and sipped his own drink at a steady pace in comparison. He wasn't tipsy (yet), so there was no chance of him challenging Matt to see how well he could hold his alcohol and getting drank under the table.  
"You seem so much more..." he searched for the right words. "Down-to-earth."  
He tapped his fingernails on his glass.  
"Plus, that's a good skill to have. Saves you money hiring photographers when you can just do it yourself."  
"Well, I only recently started living with my dad. My mom raised me whilst dad was busy with record deals and signing people onto his company and this and that." Rosemary shrugged, blushing at the way the men looked at her as if she was something special. "U-Um...so...you guys are the band. How come my dad wants to talk to Mr. Desiree alone?" she asked.  
Matt snorted into his whiskey at the title and coughed, throwing his head back.  
"Aw, fuck." he laughed. Valentine laughed along with Matt and Rosemary's cheeks turned bright red.  
"Mr Desiree? Fucking hell, wouldn't even think you were related to Marc with those manners." Valentine grinned toothily.  
"He always does this, it's weird, he and Johnnie have some sort of secret deal between them. this usually happens at meetings. Johnnie won't tell us what goes on though." Matt told her.

Johnnie tossed his head back and whimpered at the action. The noises coming out of his mouth had already dissolved into pitiful whines and mewls like this were the first time he'd ever done something like this. His fingers twitched and spasmed as he tried to comprehend the way Marc was making him feel. His ears and cheeks burned red.  
"God," he hissed, draping an arm across his face to hide his expression and to avoid making eye contact with Marc.

"It's probably because he's the golden boy," Emerson snorted, not believing it as soon as the words left his mouth. "...or, you know, probably because he's the front man."  
He drained his drink and fluttered his eyelashes at Valentine in an effort to make him get up and pour another drink for him, mouthing 'pleeeeeease' as he did so.

Marc stood up and crawled onto the bed, hovering over Johnnie. He sat back on his legs and looked down at the man.  
"Well, just look at you." he hummed, running his hands over Johnnie's soft skin. He moved Johnnie to lay on his stomach and brought his hips up, smacking his ass as he did.  
"You going to be a good baby and take my cock?" he asked, thumbing Johnnie's asshole. He pressed into the yielding hole for a moment, his thumb stroking against the soft, pink insides. "You're a whore, ain't you?" he sighed. 

"Probably." Matt agreed, motioning to Valentine to get Rosemary another drink.  
"Another drink, honey?" Matt asked sweetly, smiling at the young girl.  
"If that's alright." she smiled back.  
Valentine rolled his eyes with a smile and refilled everyone's glasses, baby-talking Emerson as he handed him his glass back.  
"There you go tiny baby Emerson, oh you're so tiny you can't even get your own drinks!" he cooed in a high pitch voice, ruffling Emerson's bouncy hair, which earned him a smack on one of his skinny legs. Valentine sat back down and spread his legs, lounging against the sofa and humming one of their songs to himself.

Johnnie's breathing hitched. It wasn't often he let Marc fuck him like this, but, God, he needed it as much as he did. He swallowed and licked his lips.  
"There's lube i-in the bedside table," he mumbled, an almost shy expression taking over his face. It was amazing how somebody taking charge could change his demeanor to such an extreme. He could hardly even bring himself to look at Marc as he cooed at him.

Emerson stuck his tongue out at Valentine playfully.  
"If I'm such a baby, you plying me with alcohol is illegal," he giggled, taking a gulp of his drink and combing his fingers through his unruly hair to try and fix the damage from Valentine ruffling it. "Besides, you're getting everyone's! Wouldn't be fair if you skipped me out."

"Don't think you fuckin' need it. You'll just take my cock easy won't you baby? Let it slide right in, huh?" Marc grunted, fisting a hand in Johnnie's long hair and pulling it. Marc had some mercy on Johnnie, and spat on the man's asshole, rubbing the saliva around Johnnie's puckered hole before ramming his thick cock into the singer, making him gasp on a moan and cry out; spit wasn’t much in the way of a lube substitute. Johnnie’s ass struggled to accommodate his length, squeezing and constricting around it as he attempted to stifle his cries. Marc enjoyed the choking sounds and wrapped his forearm around Johnnie's neck, pulling him back against him as he moved his hips.  
"That's it baby, move against daddy's cock. Work that pretty boy hole, huh?" he groaned.

"Oh, I know a lot of things that would be illegal for you to do if you were a baby." Valentine grinned, winking at Matt.  
"So that isn't a rumor?" Rosemary gasped, quickly shutting up and looking down at her drink. "I-I mean...I heard it go around...in the papers and outside the venue's…”  
Matt leaned forward in interest. Was she a fan?  
"You know about the rumors?" Matt asked.  
"Uh, well, my dad kinda has to hear about them. He needs to know what people think of the bands he's managing and it was in a Rolling Stone column..." she babbled, her cheeks getting pinker and pinker.  
Val smirked at her as he sipped his whiskey. "If I didn't know any better, I'd say you're a fan." he grinned.

Johnnie gurgled in the back of his throat, clutching at Marc's beefy arm as he choked him out and forced himself inside with no prep. Tears sprang to his eyes but he refused to shed them for fear of looking weak. By this point, the only thing keeping him quiet was the fact that his windpipe was being crushed, leaving him wheezing and barely breathing. His asshole clenched around Marc's cock, trying to defend against the intrusion and failing. Sweat stuck his hair to his face and he closed his mouth around Marc's arm as best he could.  
"Fuck." Marc groaned deeply in Johnnie's ear, drawing out the word. "God, you're taking my cock so good, stuffed right in that tight ass, huh?" he grunted, pressing his arm harder against Johnnie's throat.  
"You don't want your precious Valentine finding out that you're fucking your manager for success for your band?" he taunted Johnnie, thrusting into the young man hard, his cock bouncing against his soft stomach with each thrust, totally neglected. Marc let go of Johnnie's neck and grabbed his hips instead, letting the singer flop back down onto the bed, his hips only held up by Marc's hands. Johnnie's manager pounded into him, moaning and grunting as he did. 

Emerson flushed indignantly and pouted like a child.  
"Valll," he whined, turning away from him ever so slightly in his seat. He looked up at Rosemary with a hint of worry in his eyes out of concern that her feelings towards them would change, and that she wouldn't want to work with Hot Sick anymore. He couldn't help but clutch Matt's arm for comfort and took another swig of his drink.  
Matt stroked Emerson's hair as he leaned on him and shushed him softly.  
"I...I like you guys a lot. I love your music and your personalities and talent and I'd love to manage you guys instead of my dad. But he'll never give the job up to me, not until he dies at least." she sighed, shaking her head.  
"So...you're not weirded out by Matt and Emerson?" Val asked, giving the blonde bassist a knowing look. Rosemary laughed softly and shook her head.  
"No, of course not." she smiled. "I mean, your 'friendship' is reported on in the papers and magazines. No one needs to know if you don't want it out there." she shrugged. "Then again," she added, "you and Johnnie constantly...do stuff on stage together, and the fans love it."

Johnnie's whole body burned with shame at the mention of Valentine, though the feeling wasn't enough to stop his cock from throbbing and miserably dripping precum whilst Marc ignored it to chase his own pleasure. Once Marc let go of his throat, he gasped like he had been half-drowned and rubbed his neck shakily. He hoped to God that didn't leave a bruise where people could see, otherwise, he'd have to start borrowing Valentine's chokers. His muscles trembled with exertion and his eyes rolled back as Marc set a merciless pace, thrusting inside of him with no consideration whatsoever.  
"M-Marc, please," he whimpered hoarsely. "I-I-"  
He dared not say he couldn't do it. Who knew what kind of trouble he would get into if he did.

Emerson relaxed his grip on Matt's arm and stroked it with his fingertips comfortingly with an absent smile, feeling his soft arm hairs.  
"I'm glad that you're more open-minded than most," Emerson replied quietly, sipping from his glass and placing it on the coffee table beside the sofa. He raised an eyebrow at Val upon Rose's mention of him and Johnnie, though kept his mouth shut; it wasn’t his place to say anything.

"Oh fuck, come on baby, take daddy's cock, that's it." Marc rambled, throwing his head back and looking down at Johnnie. He grabbed the pretty boys hair again, making him cry out.  
"That's it, daddy's gonna pour all his cum into your ass and you're gonna keep it in there, aren't you?" he grunted, panting against Johnnie's hot skin as he leaned over him. Marc groaned and chased his orgasm, burying his face in Johnnie's hair as he came with a loud moan. He stayed still for a few moments and then pulled out, flipping Johnnie over. The poor guy looked fucked.  
"Listen here, bitch." Marc spat, grabbing Johnnie's hair and pulling him up so their faces were inches apart. "I'm gonna do what I want with that cock, and if you don't cum, that's your problem, got it?" he said. Marc didn't give Johnnie time to answer and just got onto his knees in front of the worn-out singer. Johnnie looked down at him with heavy-lidded eyes and bright pink cheeks, awaiting whatever Marc was going to do with anxiety and anticipation tingling through him.  
Marc's technique was simple. He'd give a soft, gentle lick to the tip of Johnnie's cock, then smack his hand against it, making the singer cry out in pleasure and pain. 

Matt caught Emerson's hand in his own and squeezed it, and the two had a small, sweet hand wrestle between them. Matt won of course and held Emerson's hand in his own.  
Valentine cleared his throat and rested his free hand on his crotch. Rosemary followed it with her eyes before quickly looking back up at his face.  
"Uh...yeah, mostly for publicity. Johnnie says stuff like that works so we just go with it." he shrugged, not wanting Rosemary to get the idea that he was unavailable, although, at the thought of dating or even just hooking up with her, he got a pang in his chest. He didn’t want to be disloyal to Johnnie - though they weren’t even together; they just screwed around sometimes. She was a gorgeous girl and Valentine didn’t want to pass the opportunity up, especially not because of the hypocritical singer who slept around but got green-eyed with jealousy when Valentine dared to look in someone else’s direction. He didn’t have a hold on him. Even if he had loved him since college.

 

Johnnie was tormented by the blurred lines of pleasure and pain and clamped his hand over his mouth to prevent himself from crying out at the short, stinging slaps. His ass was raw and he clenched to stop the thick cum from dripping out of him, not wanting to be punished for not doing as he was told. He would obey.  
"Daddy," Johnnie whimpered, his voice barely above a whisper. It wasn't often that he would call Marc by that title, but when he did it meant that he was thoroughly fucked out and feeling delicate.  
Emerson strained to listen, thinking that he had heard something - but it was probably just Johnnie and Marc talking about ‘important band stuff’. None of his business. He watched Valentine and Rosemary interact warily, not wanting either one of them to get their heart broken; Valentine sucked at commitment and relationships in general, and Rose, being both a fan and their potential future manager, could be putting her position at risk. He just made an 'mmm' noise, neither agreeing or disagreeing with Val, although he knew he was, to be quite frank, chatting utter shit.

“Please, please can I cum?” Johnnie whispered into his hand, looking down at his manager who currently had his tongue on his cock. God, if someone were to walk in now, what would he say? ‘Oh, just a business agreement, haha!’ He didn’t think so. Johnnie pleaded quietly, his breathing becoming labored.  
“Marc, oh fuck, please - I promise I’ll make money, I’ll do good.” the singer sobbed, curling his toes and trying his best to not cum before he was allowed.  
“Okay.” Marc murmured against the tip of Johnnie’s cock, his vibration making the singer sob into his palm as he bucked his hips against his managers face, throwing his head back and trying his best to cover up his moans.  
Johnnie came, tears rolling down his burning cheeks as he did. It hurt, but it felt so good. Marc tugged on Johnnie’s cock, milking his orgasm for all it was worth. Johnnie’s entire body wracked with tremors and shook the bed beneath them as he was overstimulated and tried to squirm from Marc’s firm grasp, but the band’s manager just looked up at him with a smirk and gripped him tighter, pleased to see the cocky singer reduced to a blubbering mess from his hands and mouth.  
“Stop - stop, Marc, p-leeease,” he whined, his volume growing a little louder as he begged Marc to end the torture.

The mood in the lounge changed, and Matt and Emerson exchanged a glance, both aware of the vibe between their guitarist and their possible future manageress. “I’m gonna use the can.” Matt interrupted.  
“Yeah, me too.” Emerson said, quickly getting up from the couch with Matt.  
“There’s only one bathroom.” Valentine pointed out. Emerson looked at him for a moment and quickly turned to follow Matt out of the lounge like a puppy. Rosemary just sat there and boggled at them.  
“So...you’re British?” Rosemary said, more of a statement from a question, her gaze still lingering on the door to the lounge.  
“Yeah, moved to California when I was seven.” Valentine nodded, jogging his leg nervously. Damn it, he was normally so smooth and flirtatious, much like Johnnie. Rosemary returned her eyes to Valentine as he spoke up and she nodded, eager to learn more about the band.  
“Johnnie and I met in school and we’ve been friends ever since. We met Matt in a rock bar where he was playing the drums and asked him to join our band and Emerson turned up to an audition for a bassist.” Valentine rambled on about the band, obviously very proud of his friends.  
Rosemary smiled at him and nodded, obviously interested in what he had to say.

Eventually, Marc let go of Johnnie’s soft cock and stood up, dressing properly and running a hand through his hair.  
“Get dressed, you look like shit.” he spat at Johnnie.  
The singer miserably did as he was told and pulled his clothes back on shamefully. He hated this, he hated Marc and what he did to him. Most of all, he hated enjoying it. Johnnie buttoned up his shirt and Marc used the en suite to clean the drying cum off of his face. The two of them emerged from the bedroom and walked back to the lounge, walking into Matt and Emerson as they did. Matt starred long and hard at Marc, who just gave the older man a smug smile. Bastard.  
Johnnie sat back down next to Valentine and Rosemary straightened up.  
“Thanks for telling me about your band.” Rosemary smiled at the men who all resumed their place on the plush couch. Marc stood in the doorway and kept his eyes on Johnnie, all the while looking like the cat who got the cream.  
“Sorry we took so long,” he drawled, taking a moment to peer at his watch. “Had a lot of stuff to catch up on.”  
Miserably, Johnnie forced a smile and a nod before staring at the floor.  
“That’s fine. Band stuff is important.” Matt replied, his tone flat and unconvinced.  
The lounge remained silent for a few more moments, the only sound coming from the small radio on the coffee table blaring Quarterflash’s ‘Harden My Heart’.  
“Well, baby,” Marc started, making both Rosemary and Johnnie look up at him. “We best get going. Valentine caught Johnnie’s gaze and looked at him scrutinizingly.  
Rosemary stood up and smiled at the men.  
“It was great meeting you guys. I look forward to seeing you again.” she smiled, waving sweetly, her eyes bright as ever. Rosemary’s eyes lingered on Valentine before she left the room.  
“I’ll walk you out.” Matt said, standing up. Marc froze momentarily, though his smile never left his face.  
“Of course.”  
He and his daughter strolled down the narrow hallway with Matt trailing closeby.  
“Marc, can I speak to you about something?” he asked. The manager turned to look at Matt and nodded, opening the front door and clapping Rosemary on the back. She looked less than impressed.  
“You go get in the car, baby, I’ll be right there.” he said, a nervous edge to his voice. She agreed and gave Matt one last wave before making her way down the stairs of the building and out to the car. Marc stood stock-still as he waited for a tirade of shouting which never came; Matt was too composed for that. Instead, he closed the door and backed Marc into a corner, staring at him menacingly. Though he was shorter than the manager by a good few inches, what he lacked in height was made up for in broad shoulders and thick biceps. His arms came up to pin Marc in, whose smile was beginning to falter.  
“I know damn well what you’re playing at. Don’t think you can pull the wool over my eyes.”  
Marc opened and closed his mouth like a goldfish as he gawped at him, though Matt interrupted before he could attempt to defend himself.  
“You keep on manipulating Johnnie into whatever shit you’re into and I’ll make sure we find another manager and personally see to it that you get blacklisted from the industry.” He prodded his finger into his chest. “You’ll never work again.”  
He pulled away and let the manager out of the front door, his eyes following him as he scurried to the car and hopped inside.

The vibe between Valentine and Johnnie had changed since Johnnie had left the room, and Emerson looked at them over his glass of whiskey.  
“Anyone wanna order pizza?” Emerson spoke up. The singer and guitarist glanced at him then back at each other. Obviously not. Emerson frowned and finished his drink, standing up to pour another one.  
“Did you talk about anything important?” Valentine asked, eyeing Johnnie carefully.  
The singer shrugged.  
“Just tour dates and stuff, also about that kid writing about us in every column he gets in Rolling Stone.” Johnnie lied.  
Matt entered the room with a smile as if nothing had happened and sat down, welcoming Emerson’s warm embrace as the blond snuggled into him.  
“You alright? You were gone a while,” Johnnie laughed nervously, looking for an exit from the awkward conversation with Val. Matt folded his arms and leveled his gaze at him.  
“You’re one to talk; did you discuss a worldwide tour, or what?” Matt grinned, stroking Emerson’s soft skin absentmindedly.  
“Woah, what?!” Emerson beamed, sitting up straight and looking at Johnnie.  
“Don’t fill his head with ideas.” Johnnie said, his smile unconvincing.  
Valentine stayed quiet, his thoughts still on Rosemary. He hoped to God she would take over Marc. None of the band members could stand their current manager; plus, Rosemary was friendly and actually took interest in the band.  
He’d just have to wait and see.  
“Aw, so we aren’t doing a worldwide tour?” Emerson said sadly, snuggling back into Matt and looking at the older man with big brown eyes.  
“No, it was just a joke. Sorry for getting your hopes up,” he replied with a smile. “maybe someday though.”  
“Do you think she’ll end up being our manageress?” Valentine finally spoke up, cutting into the conversation, his eyes boring into a very interesting spot on the coffee table. Johnnie shrugged, though his eyebrows furrowed slightly, already feeling a little jealous. God, he needed to sort himself out. He was only asking.  
“I dunno. She seems nice enough. It’s just a shame her dad’s…” he trailed off, not wanting to say anything that could incriminate himself or Marc.  
“I liked her!” Emerson piped up, a pleasant expression on his face. “She’s nothing like Marc, right, Matt?” Emerson smiled, turning to look at Matt.  
“Pleasant girl, really professional and polite, you wouldn’t think they were even related.” Matt agreed, a hint of venom in his tone. His bandmates just put the vitriol down to the way that he treated them like a machine rather than a group of people; he’d ranted about it enough times for them to know about it.  
Emerson finished off his whiskey and planted the glass on the coffee table, leaning against Matt and letting out a heavy sigh. The mood had nosedived considerably since Marc’s visit.  
“I’m going for a piss,” Valentine announced crudely, standing up and stretching, his vest showing off his biceps and tattoos, which Johnnie appreciated very much. Valentine left the lounge to use the bathroom, leaving the three men alone. Johnnie rubbed his head with his fingers and groaned quietly, the ache in his head due to his hair being tugged on not subsiding. Matt watched him sympathetically, though was careful not to let the singer notice. If there was one thing the singer hated, it was pity. He was too proud for that.  
Emerson’s eyes closed and his breathing slowed as he dozed off, his alcohol beginning to catch up with him. Matt was glad that he mercifully hadn’t gotten into a competitive state like he usually did when tipsy, challenging the group to drinking contests and other reckless games. He tapped his foot agitatedly as he waited for Valentine to leave the bathroom, fingering the plastic pouch in the inner pocket of his leather jacket, his palms slippery with sweat. A sour taste grew in his mouth. He knew full-well how Emerson would feel if he was awake; the youngest member would insist on accompanying him to the toilet if he thought even for a second that Matt might relapse into his bad habit. One time, he’d even snatched the packet from Matt’s hands and thrown it into the bowl before flushing it. Matt hadn’t slept easy that night.  
But he was asleep and what he didn’t know couldn’t hurt him. The drummer swallowed thickly, wetting his lips.  
Johnnie eyed Matt from across the couch, the telltale crinkle of plastic clueing him in on what Matt was thinking.  
“I’ll cover for you if he wakes up,” Johnnie said flatly, not approving of Matt’s actions but knowing he would do the same for him. Matt gave him a grateful smile and stood up, heading to the bathroom. Unbeknownst to him, Valentine was leaned against the bathroom door, eyes closed and a hand around his dick. He’d rushed into the bathroom and locked the door when his sexual thoughts had manifested into something physical. He started and yelped when Matt knocked on the door.  
“You alright in there?” Matt asked, his voice quiet so as not to wake up Emerson.  
“Y-Yeah, fuck, one sec!” he called back, sighing as his cock softened in his hand. God damn it. Valentine pushed his cock back into his pants and zipped his trousers up. Matt snorted as he heard him fumble around; he knew what he was up to. He rinsed his hand under the tap and ruffled his sweaty hair, making himself ‘presentable’ before unlocking the door and coming face to face with Matt.  
“Sorry, just, uh…” Valentine trailed off, not being able to come up with an excuse. Matt just laughed and shook his head at Valentine’s uncharacteristically meek expression, having literally been caught with his pants down. He waved his hand at him.  
“‘S fine.”  
Valentine hurried off back to the lounge, unable to look Matt in the eye.


End file.
